How to Set a Custom Virtual Background in Google Meet, Zoom and Teams

In all three apps, you upload a custom background from the video effects panel. In Google Meet it's Backgrounds and effects. In Zoom, look under Settings > Video & effects > Virtual backgrounds. In Microsoft Teams it's Effects and avatars before a meeting, or Video effects and settings during one. Use a 1920 x 1080 JPG or PNG and you won't have to think about cropping.

The steps below are for the desktop apps and the web version of Meet, which is where custom uploads work most consistently. Menu names change now and then; if a label doesn't match exactly, look for the same words in the video or effects area of the app.

Before you start: the file

A virtual background is just an image. The settings that matter:

If you're making one, our free background studio exports at exactly 1920 x 1080. Keep any text or logo in the top corners. You'll sit in the middle and cover most of the lower half of the picture.

Google Meet

Before you join a call

1. Open the meeting link in your browser. You'll land on the preview screen with your camera on.
2. Under your video preview, click Backgrounds and effects.
3. In the panel that opens, choose the backgrounds section. Under the blur and personal backgrounds row, click the upload option (a plus or image icon) to add your own.
4. Pick your image file. It's applied right away, and you'll see yourself in front of it.
5. Join the meeting.

For a quick blur instead, there's a one-click Blur button on the bottom right of your self-view.

During a call

1. At the bottom of the screen, next to the microphone button, click Video settings (the small arrow or more-options button next to the camera, depending on your version).
2. Open Backgrounds and effects.
3. In the backgrounds tab, choose the upload option under personal backgrounds and select your file.
4. Click Close to get back to the call.

To remove an effect, click Turn off visual effects at the bottom right of your self-view and pick which ones to remove.

Meet on phones and tablets has backgrounds too, through the effects button on your self-view. Whether you can upload your own image there depends on your device and app version. On a computer it always works, unless your organization has disabled it.

Zoom

Before a meeting

1. Open the Zoom desktop app and sign in.
2. Click your profile picture in the top right corner, then Settings.
3. Click Video & effects, then the Virtual backgrounds tab.
4. Click the add icon (+) and choose to add an image. Select your file.
5. If Zoom asks, click Download to install the package for using virtual backgrounds without a green screen.

Your background is now in the list and stays selected for future meetings until you change it.

During a meeting

1. In the meeting toolbar, click the small arrow next to Video.
2. Choose Video & effect settings.
3. In the virtual backgrounds section under your preview, click the add icon and select your image.

If the Virtual backgrounds tab is missing, the feature is probably switched off in your account. Sign in to your account on the Zoom website, open the meeting settings, turn on virtual background, then sign out of the desktop app and back in. On a company account your administrator may control this.

Zoom also accepts short MP4 or MOV videos as backgrounds, between 360p and 1080p. They're fun for a social call, but moving backgrounds are distracting in a work meeting and cost your computer more processing power.

Microsoft Teams

Before a meeting

1. Open your Teams calendar, select the meeting and click Join.
2. On the pre-join screen, select Effects and avatars.
3. Select More video effects, then Add new.
4. Choose your image file. It appears in the list of backgrounds; select it.
5. Join the meeting. The background stays on until you change it or choose None.

During a meeting

1. In the meeting controls, select More actions (the three dots), then Video effects and settings.
2. Select Video effects.
3. Select Add new and pick your image.
4. Click Preview to check it privately first, then Apply.

Teams doesn't offer background effects on Linux or in some virtual desktop setups. If you don't see these options at all, the feature isn't available on your device or has been restricted by your organization. Teams Premium adds branded backgrounds that an organization can push to everyone, so on a company account you may see backgrounds you didn't upload.

"My text looks backwards"

This catches nearly everyone the first time. Meet, Zoom and Teams can show your own video mirrored, like a bathroom mirror, because that feels natural when you look at yourself. A background with words on it gets mirrored in your self-view too.

Everyone else in the call sees it the right way round. You can confirm by turning off the mirror option (in Zoom it's Mirror my video in the video settings) or by asking someone in the call. Don't flip your image to "fix" it, or it'll be backwards for everyone else.

Getting a cleaner result

Background replacement works by guessing which pixels are you. You can make the guess easier:

• Light your face from the front. A window or lamp behind you makes your outline blur into the background. Our lighting and framing guide covers cheap fixes.
• Avoid a background that matches your clothes. If your shirt is the same color as the wall behind you, the app may cut holes in you. The same goes for picking a virtual background that's close to your shirt color.
• Keep the real background simple. A plain wall behind you gives cleaner edges than a busy bookshelf.
• Pick calm images. Soft gradients and blurred rooms hide small edge errors. Sharp, high-contrast photos make every flicker obvious.
• Close heavy apps. Background effects use your processor. If your video stutters, close other programs or switch to a simple blur.

If a menu has moved, each company's own help page has the latest wording: Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams.

For a quick start, download one of the ready-made backgrounds, or make one with your name or company in the corner in the studio. If you also run live streams, the same page makes transparent name tags and lower thirds.

FAQ

What size should a custom virtual background be?

Make it 1920 x 1080 pixels (16:9). That matches most webcams and works in Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Zoom recommends at least 1280 x 720 if you don't know your camera's aspect ratio.

Why can't I find the option to upload my own background?

On a work or school account, an administrator may have turned custom backgrounds off. In Zoom the virtual background setting can also be switched off in your web account settings. Older computers that don't meet an app's requirements may only get blur, or nothing.

Does a virtual background hide everything behind me?

Not reliably. Edges can flicker when you move, and objects may show through for a moment. If something must stay private, move it out of the camera's view.

Do I need a green screen?

No. All three apps can separate you from the room without one. A green screen gives cleaner edges, and Zoom has an "I have a green screen" option if you use one.